Food Preservatives

Step 1: Understanding the reaction of ionic hydrides with water. Ionic hydrides, such as sodium hydride ( ) and calcium hydride ( ), contain the hydride ion ( ). When they react with water, they form a strong base ( ) and release hydrogen gas: where is a metal.
Step 2: Identifying the nature of the solution. Since the reaction produces hydroxide ions ( ), the solution becomes basic. Hence, the correct answer is (C) Basic solutions.